KUALA LUMPUR: Seputeh Member of parliament Teresa Kok has called on Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad to seriously examine residents' objections to the development surrounding the Kampung Bohol flood reservoir.
Kok commended Nik Nazmi for his statement to prioritise the involvement and engagement of the local community regarding the proposed cancellation of the land gazettement.
She said the government should have engaged with the local community leaders, the residents' representatives, and locals before making a decision.
As the Seputeh MP, Kok said she was never invited to any engagement session.
"I am not sure if Nik Nazmi is aware of the cancellation of the Kampung Bohol flood reservoir reserve whereby the hearing will be held at Kuala Lumpur Land and Mines Office (PTG) tomorrow.
"A total of 4.4 acres of land will be removed from this gazetted flood reservoir land and it will be owned by developers to build houses at free market prices, which is Plot 5 in the local government plan.
"The withdrawal of 4.4 acres from the flood reservoir will reduce the size of the pond and the capacity of the flood water reservoir thus may contribute to flash floods affecting the lives and the livelihood of the residents in the vicinity," she said in a Facebook post.
Kok cited a news report last year which said the Kampung Bohol technical and design report prepared by the Irrigation and Drainage Department (DID) indicated a land area of 82 acres was needed to provide protection at the level of 200 ARI (Average Recurrence Interval) after taking into account future development and climate change.
"In the PTG KL briefing to me and the media, after the withdrawal of 4.4 acres from the Kampung Bohol flood reservoir project, the size of the pond is only 63.45 acres. This is much smaller than the 82 acres land area required by DID to provide protection at the 200 ARI level," she said.
Earlier today, the New Straits Times quoted Nik Nazmi calling for more engagement sessions with residents regarding the de-gazettement of land in Kampung Bohol.
On Thursday, it was also reported that a developer had committed RM40 million to "upgrade" the Kampung Bohol retention pond along the Kesas Highway as part of its winning bid for a housing project.
Aside from the requirement to upgrade the retention pond, the developer will also fork out RM41.7 million for the premium of six plots of adjacent land measuring 10.84ha.
This works out to around RM69 per sq ft.
However, details of what will be built in the area remain unclear.
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Federal Territories) Dr Zaliha Mustafa told a briefing the same day that there was a need to upgrade the pond's capacity to mitigate floods.